Eco Tourism at Doolin Cave

Doolin Cave is a member of the Burren Ecotourism Network which promotes sustainable tourism in the Burren helping to conserve the environment and improve the well being of local people. Doolin Cave is one of Ireland's leading ecotourist attractions.

As a member of the Burren Ecotourism Network Doolin Cave follows a detailed conservation policy. The polocies in place for the day to day operation of the business concentrate on the following areas:

Energy Management:

We use LED (low energy) light bulbs in the main building.

The design of the Visitor Centre, particularly the grass roof and triple-glazed areas, reduces our energy use as natural sunlight lights, heats and retains heat in the building as much as possible.

Waste Management:

We have a comprehensive system in place of recycling, composting and reducing materials used.

Water Conservation:

We collect rain water from the roof for our animals in the nature trail and are installing an underground tank to collect rain water for use in the washrooms.

Our toilets are all double flushing to conserve water use.

Use of detergents/Disinfectants:

All cleaning products used are naturally biodegradable.

We use steam cleaners and power hoses to eliminate the need for detergents as much as possible

Green purchasing policies/ green products/fair trade:

We use only Fair Trade coffee and tea.

We source our foodstuffs from sustainable sources.

Supporting the Local Community:

We support local food producers as outlined in the menu section

We promote local attractions, accommodation, etc.

We host a Burren Information Point which is an initiative of the Burren Connect project by Clare County Council.

We give employment in the area as we have a policy of using local staff as much as possible

Impacts on biodiversity:

We do not use pesticides.

Fruit bushes have been planted to make jams and use the fruit in the cafe menu

We have planted 300 native trees on site as well as natural hedgerows of indigenous plants

We have a composter on-site and use the compost on flowers and other plants on site